Method and apparatus for stirring glass



Oct. 2, 1951 c. F. DE VQE METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR STIRRING GLASS 4 sheets-shea:V 1

Filed Aug.v 9, 1945 Oct. 2, 1951' C. r-'. IADEVOFY ME'Ll-lCn/J'y AND APPARATUS FOR STIRRINC GLASS 4- sheets-sheet 2 Filed Aug. 9, 1945 Oct. 2, 1951 Filed Aug. 9,- 1945 C. F. DE VOE y METHOD AND APPARATUSFOR STIRRING GLASS 4 sheets-sheet s gpg Z 'Qttutneps Qct. 2, 1951 c. F. DE voE METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ,STIRRING GLAss Filed Aug. 9, '1945 4 'Sheets-Sheetk 4 inhmtur CHARLES E afl/0E 5 4 a ,l A l v Patented ocez, 1951 Charles F. De Voc, Corning,l 1N;Xiassgnor to Corning Glassworks, Corning;` NfY, 4a corpoi ration of New York innemen-Auguste, 1945,1"s`eri1a1 No1-traste" -oclaiina (C1.49-`7*i-)` The present` invention relates toglass-"stirring,-

and particularly to `means and .methods o'f stir ring glass while sin transit `from a main supply body to a working body :or tota forming apparatus;

In the past, attempts haye'fbeen'madeto .homogenze glass by stirring it `withdevices'associated with the feeder orifices of boots -or forehearths connected Vwith thefning ends' of :melting-tanks.-

It hasv al'so Ybeen common practice to vstir lthe body of glass in the ning "end 'of va melting Atank as well as bodies of glass 1in :pots employed 'inthe production of melts 1of`optical glass with Water cooled irods, woo-den poles-'fand the like. These attempts 'have had, at best, only 'limited success.

The prime object of theV present invention is a stirring means Yand method `v/hichiwill 'completely eliminate inhomogenetiesy in molten glass', l#and particularly :one in' which 'a stream' of rglass fromf a v'supply body may' be progressively .homogenized just inradvance of lits delivery toiapool for work-e ingV or just before its delivery toff'orming appa'- ratus. y

Another object is a stirring means Vand'r-metlrodv which is especially'suitablefor iiowteed installa'- tions wherein the ,glass to' loeA Worked'issusirinia continuous stream VA further object isa stirringlmeansland method suitable for insertion in a stream 'between asap-f ply body and anyconventional form'of? glass yfeediA ing equipment.

In brief, the lpresent inventionlinvlves passingl all portions of the Vglass which 'istobfsstirredor homogenized through la' restricted =`z`on`e -in which? each increment of volume of the Vglass, isfsube jected to avigorous shear-ing action such that cordsor inhomogeneous portions of 'fthe' glasstare greatly attenuated and intimately mixed withthe remaining portions of the glass. 'In theiillusf trated embodiments of the inventioniiuid: glass to be homogenized is fed into the 'top endf'of a vertically disposed cylinder'v and Yis homogenized as itV travels downwardly through the'fcylinderbyr a suitable stirring Vdevice therein arranged coaxial therewith. The'invention further involveszstir ring methods which are sufciently severe tofdy= namically halt the forward movement of the glass along the cylinder wallandto'thereby force such glass inwardly where it is subjected-*to iur"- ther stirring; Alterriatively, the' methodfmaylm--` clude stirring in Aa Amanner 'which'iinvolve's a nominal upward How' ofglass along tlie'oylinder' wall.

The cylinder may be arrangedtofreceivefmolten glass from a remotely 'disposed supply ib'odiyf-rby nieans fofv ya ftirbel vortr-"eug'ln` Alternatively; thel cylinderfmaybe arranged rbelow :andl joined to -thej us-ual-oreherthbottom outlet.V It afiow :feed to bensedfthe orice diameter atfthe lower end olf-'theY cylindermay then be ofv a -sizeand shape suitable for iioweedingas required vby the iorgmf ing apparatus. Ifgfonthe fother hand, anneedlej feed v`is tto-be used, '.-grlassican =be :conveyed by an elbow extended I -f-rom the bottom VAof the` cylinder to a. conventionalV Aform of -feeder structure from which `the fglass 'issues from fafbottom'outlet under a-controlneedla ,n l Y By vway -fo'f VVerrar-holainflig. :lumiA the eccomipanying drawings, applicant has4 shown-an 'eleva-,1 tional view-partly section, offra term Vof apparatus embody-ing the invention adapted 'to receive glass issuing fromY a=- suitable nsupliily body; toV :stir

the glass-to -ahigh stateiof- :homogeneitvh andv deliver .i-t;v in ythe form of `-af-continuously flowing;

stream;- Y

Fig. 2,; funi-.the vother hand;z i's a side. elevational view Tpartly'einsection =of apparatus' similar ,to

thato-Eig; '1f' but arranged vto deliver glass into asupply fbody from which theglassis :fed ginderV control of :a needle which-:may be vraisedamilow-'- ered *to gob feed inaccordance with conventional feeder:l practice. Y n YFig. 3is'-anferner-ged side-elevational view ofl thevparticuiar form of- :stirrer shown Fig. .1. .'rlig.` 4is-a-view'takenion line of Fig.; 3.

Fig.. 5v-is 1a.',:perspective view of Ixalfsfragmen't off Fig: 3f. e

Fig. 16 .is -a side elevational'l viewv Aofl -a second form -of stirrer. I

Fig. 7 fi-sa viewvtakenonflneJ-fl fofvFig; -6i

Figil 8-1s' a vside @elevational view 4:partly in sec- Fig; 59 ra-lrhpttomplan view-of the lower-end ofiV the -stirreroff'Figr 8."

Referring Y Fig; 1 i thenumeral H is Yapplied-T to awglass VIfeed tube extending between a simplify body of vmoltemg-lass (not:shown) and :a cylinder L2v off a stirring 'appara-tus -Vembodyi-ng the 'inven-- tion. Y YIIhetube-Ll andfcylinder .Ware :preferably madepofrefraotorymetal and -mlry besurroundedy byy electrical *heathrgu windings l3- and |14, as shown; and tl-iormrg-h-lyV insu-lated-'againstfexces--" sive heat loss.- 'Ihe- :homogenized fg'lass'-l issuesj fromhoylnder fl2- via themottom-of affeed Iitiibef' within-cylinder itz; nsi'well-*as'upon ith'e speed fof rotation of such stirrermdfzits diameter .relative Applicant has determined Vthat complete homoe` genization can be obtained in a massof molten glass only if the entire body of glass is forced to Y curved impeller of the adjacent set.

pass through a zone of turbulence where the different portions of the glass are progressively sheared with respect to one another and `cordsand inhomogeneities areY attenuated and dispersed through the parent glass.' Desired results can best be obtained by passing the glass through a'- stirring chamber, preferably cylindrical in shape, havinga longitudinally extending stirrer therein whose maximum diameter is only slightly less than that of the inside of the cylinder. Even under these circumstances-certain precautions must `be taken to prevent cords of inhomogeneous glass from creeping along the inner wall of the cylinder or along the shaft of the stirrer without becoming mixed with the main body of the glass. These cords'are termed wall cords and shaft cords, respectively.-

Different devices arel employed to eliminate shaft cords and wall 'cords'.V Shaft cords are best eliminated by designing the stirrer so that it embodies a mechanical obstacle to such cords which will force glass tending to now along the 'shaft out into a zone of turbulence where it is subject to the shearing and mixing action of the vanes. This may be done by overlapping vanes which pump in opposite' directionsas in the stirrers of Figs. 3-5 and 6-'7 respectively, or by the use of a disk of substantial diameter as in Figs. 8-9.

coupling between the outer edge of the stirrer and the inner wall ofthe stirring chamber.' They may be lcompletely eliminated by establishing a dynamic dam of glass which is forced outwardly by the stirrer vanes against the chamber wall at a rate sufficiently great that the glass divides and atleastsomeof it formsa counterow along the chamber wall in opposition to the normal direction of flow of glass through the unit.

'The 'effectiveness ofthe stirring devices of the present invention is also influenced by the speed of rotation. Thus the capacity of the equipment is determined not only by its dimensions but also by the speed of rotation of the stirrer-installed therein. If the y rate of flow of the glass throughV the unit is kept low, as when the bottom of the lsleeve has a very constricted delivery outlet or the glass viscosity is high, a speed of' rotation of a relatively few revolutions per minute will" suice to appropriately mix the glass and dynamically disrupt the continuity of 'downward ilow of the glass along the cylinder wall. On the other hand, as the oriiice` outlet is enlarged and the may be employed is limited only by the ability of the weakest part of the stirrer to withstand the torque at the higherspeeds..

rtf

f shaft 3 I.

The form of stirrer illustrated in Figs. 1, 3, 4 and 5 comprises a shaft 3l driven by a pulley 30 and having groups l, 2 and 3, respectively, of arcuate shaped impellers arranged along its length. Each group comprises a. set of three impellers, such as impellers 32-34, arranged adjacent a similar set 35-31 curved in the opposite direction. Each of the impellers 32-3'1 has its major surface area in planes parallel to the axis Each impeller 32-31 also has one end suitably anchored to shaft 3| and each impeller of aset'has a corner oi its free end anchored to the adjacent corner of an oppositely Also, to add furtherv rigidity to each set of the impellers and to further promote their stirring action, rigidly secured web members in the form of disk segments 38-43 are provided. Segments 38-43 are arranged normal to thenaxis of shaft 3l, follow the inner curvature of the impellers and overlap one another, thus obstructing direct downward flow of glass within the area-occupied by the: As will be appreciated, on rotation of-v the stirrer the impellers of some sets throw the? stirrer.

glass outwardwhile the impellers of the remaining sets pull the glass inward, thereby thoroughly and rapidly mixing the glass.

created by pressures built up along the wall area.

Experiments vhave demonstrated that for the,

highest efficiency when employing a cylinder having a bore diameter of four inches, the best tween 1 and 2".

the closer the rotating impellers are to the side 1 ,Y Wall the more through-put of glass is possible" Wall cords are'reduced by the closeness of the .f

without sacriiic'ing quality. In this example the ratio of the radius of the impeller to that of the cylinder bore is .81:1 and of course this ratio may in certain installations have to be decreased somewhat, but at the expense of efficiency. For' f 1, example, as the space between the impellers and which it becomes questionable if the improve# lments ,attained warrant the installation.

practical limitsv of closeness of the impellers to the side wall are dependent entirely on the manufacturing skill exercised, but would rarely ex' The spacing between? groups of sets of the impeller blades from 1 tol 4 seems to have little change in eiect on the stirring motion or rate of through-put of good ceed the ratio of .98:1.

glass and accordingly for the sake of compactness 1 spacing between groups is believed prefr` erable.

While this type of stirrer is most efficient each group of impellers on the stirrer shaft is' same directionwill stir glass satisfactorily when: a relatively limited output of glass meets produc-f tion requirements.

Thestirrer illustrated in Figs. 6 and 'Z com-l prises a shaft having a seriesv of blades '5I-66s In short, the' movement imparted to the glass by the stirrer is such that not only is the glass thoroughly inter-l mixed but, in addition, the ilow of glass directlyfrom tube l l down the cylinder side wall is eiec' tively prevented by a dynamic dam to such ow The,

mounted the fsmaftl.i

Mittlere spaced."1%,"m,n Y n twovturns Sff'along'tnershafta Bladesr 1 and fesfpump down-audaz; G''andf se pumpenwith clockwise rotation. ThefflbladesaretpreferL ably-"of sueh-sizef=as-fto-give approximately a wall coupling. The movement of glass from the blades outwardlyV againstfthei-cylinder wall tends togpreve'nt Athe difrect=downward movement of fthe glass containing the wall cords@therealoriggwhileV the opposed. direction of pumping-f(of.4 adjacent sets of blades sets up zones of turbulence therepassmgtherethrough. Althoughall of thel ades areof"4 equal size and mountedatfthe rsarr'felp'itch with h'alfof them pumping; upaiid outward 'and Y prisesa shaft 8o having mounted on the bottom end thereof a circular diskllike stirringelemet 8T having threel depending" curved varies' 82. Mounted immediately above disk 8l is a set of three propeller blades 83 set at a 45 pitch. Higher up on shaft 80 are other somewhat larger sets of propeller blades 84 and 85. The propellers of set 84 are at a 45 pitch, whereas those of set 85 are at a 30 pitch so as to create additional stirring without excessive downward pumping. Since all propeller blades are mounted to pump down on clockwise rotation, this type of stirrer can be utilized to accelerate and supplement the gravitational ilow of glass. Rotation of the shaft 80 in a clockwise direction is essential to the production of cord-free glass. The volume of glass pumped downwardly must be greater than the volume removed through the bottom orifice so that a countercurrent or dynamic dam is set up against the chamber wall which effectively prevents wall cords from passing into the orifice. In operation, shaft cords sometimes pass through the blades 83-85 without being forced out intov a zone of turbulence. In such cases they come into contact with disk 8| and are forced thereby to move out into the zone of turbulence. Furthermore, the curved vanes 82 on the under surface of disk 8| also serve to give an outward thrust to glass thereunder which might otherwise issue with a shaft cord therein.

In the structure of Fig. 2 the cylinder 22 may be assumed to contain any one of the disclosed stirrer assemblies, and by means of an elbow 2|, conveys the stirred glass into a bowl 24 of a conventional gob feeder from which the glass 23 may be fed under control of a feeder needle 25.

Of the three forms of stirrers disclosed, that shown in Figs. l, 3, 4 and 5 is the most eiiicient. It is, however, more difficult to build great strength into a stirrer of this form than in the forms shown in the Figs. 6-9. Also, the building of the form of stirrer shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 5 would be diflicult to produce in a non-metallic refractory. In view of these facts, under circumstances requiring stirring rates such that great torque is imparted to the stirrer or in instances in which a non-metallic stirrer is needed, one or the other of the stirrers of Figs. 6-9 is considered preferable.

Although only a limited number of forms of th inventief-ivhaverbeenlillustrated'andifdescribed;. itilsundefstoodthatlmany other forms of the inventionfarelwell withiu-the'u-basic idea '.taught andiwithinf:.thelscopeiof the inventionasfclaimed;

` claimedlislzl n f glass fconditioninglapparatus :a'cylinderg alfshaftt coaxial therewith, .setsi of arcuate impeller 'blades within-said cylinder radially pro-` jecting from--fsaidf' shaft'f into closeA proximity of the`z 'ofthe' cylinderlbo're, the curvature of the' ades-Hof `oneAT set beirg'reversedi with respect tothe-'curvatureoffthe blades vof another'of the sets; t'hefv curvature o'f-y each of the blades beingaboutilanl axis parallelV tothe axis vof said shaft, ech'fbladefhaving aweblmember in the form of af'segfnent-lof 1a diskextending' in a, plane normal te 'th'ef axis of the shaft' and having its' curved edge joinedrto vtl1e`1ir'1ner` curved surface of the blade. y

2. The metho'df which" includesf continuously flwingmoltenf glass-'through a substantially vertical cylindrical" space, and'- counteracting'V the frw'r-'a`r4'z14v` movement ofA glass along the periphery of thevl space Y by continuously mechanically forcing glass which# isfin'ward of suchperiphery' out'- weirdly2 towardsuch periphery while simultaneousl imparting' a circular motion to the-glass.

The -rrn'ethodrv which in'cludesL continuously flowing-molten glass --downwardly through arsubstantially vertical" cylindrical space, simultanef ously imparting a circular motion to the glass;l and counteracting the downward movement of glass along the periphery of the space by continuously mechanically downwardly forcing glass within such space at a rate greater than that at which glass can be withdrawn from the lower end of such space whereby a portion of such downwardly forced glass is impelled upwardly from the lower end of such space along the periphery thereof.

4. The method which includes continuously flowing molten glass through a substantially vertical cylindrical space, counteracting the forward movement of glass along the periphery of the space by continuously mechanically forcing glass which is inward of such periphery outwardly toward such periphery to dynamically prevent free forward movement of glass along such periphery. simultaneously imparting a circular motion to the glass, and continuously mechanically forcing inwardly toward the center of such space glass which is outward from the center of such space so that thorough intermixing of the glass is effected as it passes through the space.

5. The method of improving the quality of glass, which comprises introducing molten glass from a supply Ibody into one end of a substantially cylindrically shaped zone at a rate to maintain the zone filled, imparting a circular motion to the glass during its passage through such zone, simultaneously inwardly displacing glass flowing along the cylindrical boundary of such zone by mechanically forcing a portion of the glass which is inward from such boundary outwardly toward such boundary, and removing glass of improved quality from the other end of the zone.

6. The method of improving the quality of glass, which comprises introducing molten glass from a supply body into one end of a substantially cylindrically shaped zone at a rate to maintain the zone filled, imparting a circular motion to the glass during its passage through such zone, simultaneously inwardly displacing glass flowing along the cylindrical boundary of such zone by mechanically forcing at least a portion of the glass which is inward from such boundary outwardly toward such boundary, the rate at which such glass is forced outwardly being suicient to dynamically prevent the forward iiow of glass along such boundary, and removing glass of improved quality from the other end of the zone.

7. The method of improving the quality of glass, which comprises introducing molten glassY from a supply body into one end of a, substantially cylindrically shaped zone at a rate to maintain the zone filled, imparting a circular motion to the glass during its passage through such zone, simultaneously inwardly displacing glass owing along the cylindrical boundary of such zone by mechanically forcing a portion of the glass which is inward from such boundary outwardly toward such boundary, subjecting al1 the glass which is inward from such boundary toV a repeated shearing action, and removing glass of improved quality from the other end of the zone.

8. A stirring device comprising a shaft having sets of arcuate impeller blades radially projecting therefrom, the curvature of the blades of one set being reversed with respect to the curvature of the blades of another of the sets, the curvature of each of the blades being about an axis parallel to the axis of said shaft, each blade having a web member in the form of a segment of a disk extending in a plane normal to the axis ofthe shaft and having its curved edge joined to the inner curved surface of the blade.

9. Thefmethod as claimed in claim 5, which includes the step of simultaneously mechanically forcing inwardly toward the center of such zone a portion of the glass which is outward from the` center of suchjzone.

CHARLES F. DE VOE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 655,009 Raw July 31, 1900 914,973 Pickett Mar. 9, 1909 1,084,210 Howard Jan. 13, 1914 1,416,307* Sever-son May 16, 1922 .1,430,040 Trust et al Sept. 26, 1922 1,603,221 Thomson Oct. 12, 1926( 1,608,710 Morrison Nov. 30, 1926 1,816,982 McNish Aug. 4, 1931 1,927,101 stenhouse sept. 19, 1933 2,137,547 Snow Nov. 22, 1938 2,431,478 Hill Nov. 25, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 711.976 France July 8, 1931 

